The
Airborne tactical Laser is a Special Operations Command (SOCOM)
sponsored Advanced Concept Technology demonstration (ACTD) program,
designed to demonstrate the use of high power tactical lasers
from an airborne platform. (More...)

Under
the program, a chemical oxygen-iodine laser (COIL) will be installed
on a modified C-130H transport aircraft, simulating a future
AC-130 laser equipped gunship. The airborne tactical laser will
be able to destroy, damage or disable targets at tactical ranges
with little to no collateral damage, supporting missions on
the battlefield and in urban operations. The laser will be able
to place a 10-centimeter-wide beam with enough energy to melt
and slice through a metal target from a distance of 15 kilometers.
ATL is expected to produce scaleable effects, meaning the weapon
operator will be able to select the degree and nature of the
damage done to a target by choosing a specific aimpoint and
laser shot duration. For example, targeting the fuel tank of
a vehicle could result in total destruction of the vehicle,
while targeting a tire might result in the vehicle stopping
without injury to the driver.

The program is led by Boeing, which is assisted by an industry
team including L-3 Communications/Brashear, which made the laser
turret, and HYTEC, Inc., which made various structural elements
of the weapon system. Boeing began flight testing of a surrogate
solid-state laser in October 2006. The aircraft used a surrogate
solid-state "low-power" laser for search and track
of ground targets. The system utilizes the hardware designed
for the high power chemical laser, which includes the beam director
and optical control bench, controlling and directing the laser
beam to its target; weapon system consoles, which will display
high-resolution imagery and enable the tracking of targets;
and sensors.

The high power chemical laser destined for the program was
also tested for the first time on Sept 21st, the ground, generating
the "first light" of the high-energy chemical laser
in ground tests. In december 2007, the high power module was
installed on the aircraft and by 2008 it is scheduled to fire
in-flight at mission-representative ground targets to demonstrate
the military utility of high energy-lasers. The test team will
fire the laser through a rotating turret that extends through
an existing 50-inch-diameter hole in the aircraft's belly. Future
potential ATL platforms could be the C-130 and MV-22 tilt-rotor
aircraft.